NBC: We're In A Recession

NBC U's
chatty Jeff Zucker stops en route to Davos and announces that
his studio broadcast network is going to stop paying for "pilots"
-- expensive test episodes the network commissions before it
actually orders a new TV series. He also paints a much darker
picture of his business, and the economy, than his boss, GE CEO
Jeff Immelt
did last week.
NYT:

“It’s clear we are in a recession in the United States, and we’re
going to have to manage our business accordingly,” he
said...“Sometimes you see the world from a different perspective
when you’re flat on your back,” he said. “At NBC Entertainment
we’ve been flat on our backs for the last few years.”

Compare that with GE's description of its business during its
most recent earnings call:

“NBC Universal delivered 10% segment
profit growth in the quarter for its fifth straight quarter of
profit growth,” Immelt said. “Film had its best year ever, with strong
global growth. Entertainment and Information Cable had record
ratings and solid earnings growth. The network continues to
improve its programming and cost position."

So which version do you want to believe? We assume the truth is
somewhere in the middle, and that the message clash has to do
with the intended audiences: Immelt is talking to investors, for
whom NBC is just a small piece of GE, while Zucker is directing
his comments at Hollywood and Hollywood writers.

We're also not so sure that Zucker's no-pilot decree is a
long-term change -- it's easy to say you're not going to order
pilots when there's no one to write them. But we wonder what
happens next year, when the strike is long resolved.